Empirical Comparison Between Capability and Two Health-Related Quality of Life Measures

The Investigating Choice Experiments Capability Measure (ICECAP) is a new preference-based measure of the extent to which a person is able to achieve attributes or capabilities related to the quality of life. Conceptually, it differs from health-related quality of life (HRQoL) as the focus is upon the ability or capacity to achieve as distinct from the current experience of the attributes. The objective of this study was to explore the empirical relationships between capability as assessed by the ICECAP for Adults (ICECAP-A) and HRQoL as assessed by the Assessment of Quality of Life (AQoL)-8D and the five-level EuroQol Five Dimensions questionnaire (EQ-5D). To compare these measures, the study employed self-reported survey data from the healthy public and from seven disease areas in five countries. Results indicate that, despite their conceptual origins, the ICECAP-A is strongly associated with the AQoL-8D and that the clear distinction between capabilities and HRQoL found in other studies is attributable to the use of the EQ-5D in the comparison and the weaker association between the EQ-5D and ICECAP-A. The suggestion that ICECAP-A should be included in evaluation studies along with a HRQoL instrument is more persuasive when the instrument is the EQ-5D. The case for its inclusion with other HRQoL instruments requires further research and evaluation.     

Adolescent Bullying and Weapon Carrying: A Longitudinal Investigation

Using four data waves from an ongoing longitudinal study, we examined the longitudinal association between weapon carrying and bullying (i.e., bully, victim, bully‐victim). Participants were 1,042 adolescents (55.9% female) recruited from Texas high schools, including Hispanic (31.7%), White (30.3%), African American (26.6%), and other (11.4%) with a mean age of 15.1 years at baseline. Multivariate logistic regression revealed that only baseline bully‐victim was linked to weapon carrying and only 1 year later (Adjusted odds ratio = 1.76, 95% confidence interval: 1.08, 2.85), after controlling for baseline weapon carrying, age, gender, race, and parent education. No significant longitudinal association was found with bully or victim. Findings emphasize the importance of interventions targeting both bullying perpetrators and victims, while also highlighting the necessity of longitudinal research.     

The economic importance of air travel in high-amenity rural areas

The western United States offers a case study on the importance of access to large population centers and their markets, via road and air travel, for economic development. The vast distances between towns and cities in the American West can be a detriment to business, yet they also serve to attract technology and knowledge-based workers seeking to live in a picturesque setting. In spite of the increasing importance of amenities to migration and business location, also needed is access to markets, particularly via commercial air service. We test a new county classification system for the western United States to reflect differing degrees of access to population centers and account for the increasing importance of airports. Past classifications are based on population size and cross-county commuting. We examine the validity of this new classification and test for differences in economic performance among the three county types. Our findings show that there are three distinct Wests that can be classified using economic performance measures and socioeconomic characteristics. The results show that “metro” and “isolated” counties are clearly distinct, but “connected” counties, those that are rural in nature but have ready access to metropolitan areas via air travel, can be difficult to distinguish from “metro” and “isolated” counties. Much of the variation is explained by travel distance to airports. The findings illustrate the importance of airports in rural development, and the limitations facing those communities that are isolated from markets and population centers. The results apply to other parts of the world with similar characteristics that include large expanses of open space, natural amenities that attract migrants and stimulate new business, and different degrees of access to large population centers via road or air travel, and therefore different rates of economic growth.     

The importance of Australian national identity to a sense of belonging of Anglo-Celtic and Chinese cultural groups in regional Australia

This study explored the primacy of importance of Australian national identity as underpinning belongingness of Anglo-Celtic and Chinese cultural groups. A mixed-method approach comprised focus groups and interviews was used. Australian national identity did not hold primacy of importance to a sense of belonging in either group, however family identities were of primary importance to both, together with cultural identity of the Chinese. Anglo-Celtic's felt culturally disassociated, whereas Chinese sought majority acceptance through cultural promotion, and bicultural identification. Findings call for further research of Australian national identity of the majority and other minority cultural groups.     

入口射流角度对通风方腔内流动的影响

用数值方法探讨了入口射流角度对顶部对称送风方式的方腔内流动的影响.计算的物理模型为固定宽高比为1,进风角度θ分别取20°,45°,70°,90°,110°,135°及160°.计算结果表明,不同的射流角度对通风方腔内流动的影响是明显的.随进风角度的变化,在不同的控制参数下,方程的解呈现多样的、不稳定的非线性特征,可归结为定常解(稳态解)、周期性振荡解、非周期性振荡解.在选定的计算参数下,当进风角度的变化范围在20°≤θ≤160°时,考虑纯强制对流,θ为135°的流场最先失稳振荡;考虑自然对流的作用,θ为70°的流场最易失稳振荡.     

Self-perceived occupational stress and distress in a Scottish police force

This paper describes an empirical study (n = 699) of occupational stress in a Scottish police force. The self-perceived stress associated with a variety of organizational and opearational stressors was examined along with the associated distress in the police officers in terms of symptoms of anxiety, somatic complaint, severe depression and social dysfunction. The analysis revealed that in spite of the potential that police work offers for exposure to adverse opeational situations such as violence or death, the highest levels of associated stress lie in relation to organizational factors such as officers' perceptions of staff shortages, inadequate resources, time pressures, lack of communication and work overload. Differential rates of perceived stress are reported accordng to gender, rank and working location. This paper further validates previsous research on stress in British police and addresses the situation from a Scottish perspective.     

Heart disease risk perception in college men and women

The authors sought to assess the perception of risks for coronary heart disease (CHD) in college men and women. They surveyed 470 undergraduates from 2 major 4-year institutions who completed a questionnaire that measured perceived risks for heart disease. Sixty-eight percent of the respondents rated their risks as lower or much lower than those of their peers, indicating a clear optimistic bias. The research also revealed that the students who exercised regularly rated their risk of coronary disease lower than those who did not do so. In addition, women perceived a number of risk markers to be more potent or causative factors than men did. A significant number of participants did not comprehend commonly understood causal relationships associated with heart disease risk. The findings in this preliminary investigation suggest that college men and women do not accurately perceive their risks for developing heart disease.     

Risk assessment of forensic patients: nurses' role

One of the unique roles of forensic nurses is to conduct risk assessments. Establishing a therapeutic nurse-patient relationship helps forensic nurses perform accurate and useful risk assessments. Accurate risk assessments can facilitate formulation of individualized risk management plans, designed to meet patients' needs and ensure public safety. The importance of forensic nurses' knowledge and application of appropriate communication and proper documentation cannot be overemphasized.